Maya, a digital bank in the Philippines, is working with financial advisers on a potential US initial public offering that could value the company at as much as $1 billion. The company holds a digital banking license from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and offers savings accounts, consumer loans, payments, and merchant services through its mobile app. What sets it apart is a regulated crypto trading function built directly into the platform.
Maya built a 5.4 million-customer base
As of 2024, Maya had accumulated 5.4 million customers in its digital banking business. Its loan book reached 68 billion Philippine pesos, or about $1.2 billion. Backers include KKR, Tencent Holdings, and the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank. According to the report, Maya prefers a US listing over a regional exchange because American markets offer deeper pools of capital and broader access to institutional investors, while Southeast Asian exchanges remain more limited for large tech listings.
IPO conditions in the US have improved
The timing may be more favorable than it was in previous years. In 2025, the US market saw 202 IPOs raising a combined $44 billion, the highest deal count in four years. Globally, there were 1,293 IPOs that raised about $171 billion, up 39% year over year. MLaw Office partner Nathan Marasigan said a US listing is possible, but the deciding factor will be whether Maya can present stable, bank-like revenue performance. Investors, he said, are focused on predictability, profit trajectory, and governance quality rather than growth alone.
Crypto integration could help and hurt
Maya’s in-app crypto trading feature gives it a clear point of differentiation among fintech companies. Sora Ventures researcher Paolo Lising described the planned IPO as a form of capital markets arbitrage, built on the valuation premium US investors may assign to Southeast Asian fintech firms. He also warned that crypto exposure could complicate the listing because of volatility concerns and regulatory review. Some users have reported intermittent trading issues on the platform, saying the buy and sell buttons were disabled when highly volatile assets surged, while less volatile tokens were not affected. That kind of selective trading restriction could draw questions during due diligence.
Philippine regulators have taken a mixed approach
The regulatory backdrop in the Philippines has moved in two directions at once. Last year, the country’s securities regulator blocked 10 offshore crypto exchanges, including OKX, Bybit, and KuCoin, citing unregistered operations. At the same time, the central bank has supported compliant players, and Maya stands out as an example of a firm operating under the country’s virtual asset service provider framework. If the offering goes ahead, Maya would become the first Southeast Asian digital bank with integrated crypto trading to list in the US.